Read and Write a 6 Page Review of the Book `JOSEPH J. ELLIS, FOUNDING BROTHERS:THE REVOLUTIONARY GENERATION(2000)`

Review : Founding Brothers : A Revolutionary Generation

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In Founding Brothers : The Revolutionary Generation , Joseph J . Ellis argues that the United States experienced an extreme crisis between 1787 , when the United States Constitution was written , and the end of Thomas Jefferson 's presidency in early 1809 . During this period the leaders of the United States wrote and ratified the Constitution and evolved from a loose confederation held together by the Spirit of '76 into a working country that would soon play a large role on the world

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In his book , Ellis explores this period of crisis through six "stories that illustrate how critical this period was and how it was dealt with by these "Founding Brothers " Ellis concentrates his narrative on eight "brothers " who impacted this period : James Madison , Alexander Hamilton Aaron Burr , George Washington , John Adams , Abigail Adams , Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson . Oddly , although Abigail Adams is listed as one of the "brothers " the publisher elected not to include her picture on the cover with the other seven

According to Ellis the United States was in crisis during this time period because it was making the transition from a loose confederation of states operating under the Articles of Confederation to a more united country that would feature the United States Constitution as its supreme law . This was difficult for a variety of reasons , but Ellis focuses on four : no one had ever tried to establish a democracy on such a grand scale with such geographical and philosophical diversity , the Declaration of Independence that had inspired a generation stigmatized concentrated central power , the states had no history as a nation , and finally because approximately 700 ,000 of the inhabitants of the new country were slaves with more than 90 of these people living in the South (Ellis , 2000 ,

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Each of Ellis ' stories , written as individual chapters , illustrates a particular point of crisis and how the parties involved dealt with it Although Ellis wrote the stories to be independent of the others , which they are , they have four common features

First , the principal persons who engaged in a collective attempt to resolve the problem had diverse personalities and ideologies . This diversity acted to check and balance the acts of any one person or political party . Second , these people knew each other . They dined together , met face to face and engaged in extensive correspondence that allowed them to communicate their ideas fully and thoughtfully . Third these founding brothers were so wary that the union might collapse that they managed to take the most volatile issue , slavery off the table for a sufficient length of time to allow the country to establish itself Finally , these men and one woman realized they were making history . They wrote as much to posterity as to each other and kept these letters for posterity (Ellis , 2000 , pp . 17-18

This book has many strong points , but one stands out : Ellis ' treatment of the issue of slavery in chapter three "The...